Pubdate: Tue, 15 Oct 2013
Source: Daily Mail (UK)
Copyright: 2013 Associated Newspapers Ltd
Contact:  http://www.dailymail.co.uk/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/108
Author: Jack Doyle

HALF A MILLION CANNABIS GROWERS IN UK HOMES

A STAGGERING half a million people in the UK are running secret 
cannabis farms in their homes.

An explosion in production of the drug means hundreds of thousands of 
suburban houses have been converted into hidden marijuana factories.

The booming industry is fuelled by gangs switching from hard drugs 
such as cocaine and heroin because of the more lenient penalties for 
cannabis, police say.

An investigation found dealers know they will escape jail if they 
grow fewer than ten plants in a single property - even if they are 
growing the dangerously potent skunk form.

Even nine plants is enough to net around UKP40,000 a year.

The allegations sparked fury among anti-cannabis campaigners who said 
police were letting dealers get away with it.

Mary Brett, of Cannabis Skunk Sense, said: 'Nobody is going to smoke 
this much in a year on their own. These people should be hauled 
before the courts for this.

'This amounts to decriminalisation of the supply of a Class B drug. 
Nobody in their right mind thinks that anybody would grow nine plants 
and not supply.'

The extraordinary scale of the problem was revealed in an ITV 
documentary. It found 80 per cent of the drug that is smoked in the 
UK is produced here - compared with 65 per cent a few years ago.

Police figures show the average number of cannabis farms discovered 
every month in 2008 was 252. But by last year that had nearly trebled 
to 656  and the number is still rising. Merseyside police alone said 
they find two houses a day filled with the plants.

Filmmaker Conor Woodman said cannabis growers can 'make UKP40,000 a 
year' adding: 'One single mum told me her bedroom tax pales into 
insignificance compared to what she makes from the cannabis in her spare room.'

The figures were drawn from a recent report by the Independent Drug 
Monitoring Unit which estimated that the number of growers could be 
as high as 504,000 - one producer for every 44 households.

The documentary found shops selling all the equipment to grow 
cannabis - for as little as UKP400. The ' hydroponics' kit included 
tents, lights and ventilation systems, which increase the yield and 
strength of the drug.

Police say gangs are switching from large production warehouses to 
dozens of smaller growing centres. These can be set up in hours in 
converted lofts or garages. Often rented properties are used for a 
short time then abandoned, leaving huge power bills.

Superintendent Mark Harrison of Merseyside Police said ten houses 
with 30 plants each would give 'the same yield and the same 
profitability' as large commercial sites.

Neighbours can be alerted by blacked-out windows, hot walls, 
condensation, a pungent smell and visitors at unusual times. Police 
use thermal imaging cameras to see the heat given off from the 
powerful lamps that help the plant to grow indoors.

Forces in the North West of England have reported growing tension 
between cannabis gangs, resulting in a surge in reported shootings.

In London, police seized cannabis worth UKP2.6million in a single 
month of raids in August and made more than 350 related arrests.

Scotland Yard said it shut down 37 marijuana factories and recovered 
more than 2,700 plants, alongside vast amounts of cash and weapons.

The revelations will raise concerns about the amount of super-strong 
skunk cannabis on Britain's streets.

Anti-drugs campaigners say a growing number of users are being 
hospitalised with 'mental disorders'. In just three years, the number 
admitted for treatment has increased by 50 per cent. It is 
particularly harmful when smoked by young teenagers whose brains are 
still developing.

Police have faced scrutiny for adopting a softer attitude to 
drugtaking. It means a ' less robust enforcement approach' on drugs 
such as cannabis, with more offenders receiving on-the-spot fines.

Exposure: Britain's Booming Cannabis Business, ITV1, 11.05pm, tomorrow
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom